Promise This
by Music-to-your-ears
Summary: Mercedes Jones is new to the music industry and Sam Evans is hired to be her bodyguard. AU prompt idea given to me by amuzed1. Let's see where I can go with this.
1. Chapter 1

Nineteen year old Mercedes Jones stood in her father's office with her hands on her hips. She had just recently won an award for Best New Female Artist and they'd just found out that she had been nominated for her first Grammy the previous day.

"Mercedes, this is Sam Evans," Michael Jones said to his daughter, introducing her to a tall dark blonde haired white man who was standing next to his desk.

"Daddy, I've told you before that I don't want a bodyguard," Mercedes responded.

Mr. Jones had been trying to get Mercedes to consider a bodyguard ever since she'd moved out of the house with them and into her apartment six months earlier.

"You may not _want_ a bodyguard but you_ need_ one," her father explained to her. "Now as I was saying, this is Sam Evans."

Mercedes let out a sigh of disbelief, looking up at the ceiling and rolling her eyes.

"This young man will take you where you need to go, pick you up, and you will not go anywhere without him, understand?" Mr. Jones continued his voice deep.

Mercedes didn't say anything as she took out her cell phone and dialed a number.

"Hello, may I please speak with Mrs. Patricia Jones?" she said into the phone.

She could hear someone saying something to her mother on the other end. _Probably something about a patient._ She listened as her mother answered the voice with an _"Okay"_ and then answered the phone with _"Hello"._

"Hello Mom, will you please tell Daddy that I don't need a bodyguard," Mercedes started, putting the phone on speaker.

"No, I'm not going to tell him that," her mother responded on a small chuckle.

Mercedes, used to getting her way, let out a small cry of frustration. "Mom!" she nearly yelled.

"No," Mrs. Jones responded firmly. "Are you with your right father now?"

"Yes Ma'am," Mercedes answered dryly.

"Hand him the phone," her mother requested.

"It's on speakerphone," Mercedes said, rolling her eyes and thanking God that her mother wasn't there to personally witness such an attitude.

"Michael?" Mrs. Jones called out to her husband.

"Yes, Honey?" Mr. Jones answered.

"We've had this conversation before and Lord knows I am tired of hearing the two of you go back and forth about this," Mrs. Jones' stated. Her voice was rising now and Mercedes could tell that she was frowning. "She's getting a body guard and that's the end of this conversation."

"Ugghh!" Mercedes said _after_ she'd told her mother _"I love you too"_ and the both of them had hung up. "Daddy, this isn't fair!"

Mr. Jones humped his shoulders. "Two against one, Baby girl," he said, turning his focus to some papers on the desk in front of him.

Accepting that she'd lost this round, Mercedes turned to leave but immediately stopped in her tracks.

_This man was following her._

His footsteps were heavy as he walked with long deep breaths and he had on shades which made it look as if he was staring straight ahead. She looked back at him, tilting her head upward slightly to make eye contact with him. She couldn't see his eyes. He didn't smile and he didn't step back. He simply stood there as if waiting for her to make her next move.

"So how do you know he's not dangerous?" Mercedes asked, pointing a finger at _him_ who was standing close behind her.

Mr. Jones looked up from what he'd been doing. "Mercedes, this is his job," he stated in an irritated tone.

"And?" she asked with wide eyes.

"_And_ he's going to keep you _from_ harm, not _harm you_. He's trained to do this." he added.

She wanted to tell him that she knew what a bodyguard was for, but she didn't really understand why she needed one. She also wanted to tell him that she wasn't a baby anymore therefore she didn't need a babysitter. Besides,_ to her knowledge_, she had no enemies.

"_Do they think one of my fans will come up to me and try to kill me?"_ Mercedes thought to herself. She rolled her eyes, shook her head, and laughed a little. Even though she loved and appreciated the fact that her parents would do anything to keep her safe, she sometimes wished that they weren't so protective of her.

She decided to keep all of those things to herself though. She knew that she was already testing it with going against their word, and she didn't want to make matters worse.

"Baby girl," Mr. Jones said all of a sudden, getting up from his seat and walking over to where Mercedes was standing.

She looked up at her father with questioning eyes.

"As your father _and_ your manager, it's my job to make sure you're safe at all times," he told her and she only nodded a little.

"Do this for me, okay?" he said in that tone that had always made Mercedes feel safe. That same tone that had always given her the courage to do _anything_ that she set her mind to.

At that very moment, she knew that there was no way she could keep this argument up. "Okay," she said with a nod, her tone soft now.

"Thank you," he said, pulling her into a tight hug and kissing her on the forehead then turning to go back to the seat at his desk. "Oh and, Baby girl." he called again.

"Yes?" she answered once more.

"I just wanted to say Congratulations _again _on your Grammy nomination," Mr. Jones said with a smile.

She couldn't help the smile that was forming across her own face now. "Thank you, Daddy," she answered.

As soon as she proceeded to leave his office again, she could hear _his_ footsteps and heavy breathing close behind her. It was going to be hard, but Mercedes knew that this was something that she was going to have to get used to, _and quick._


	2. Chapter 2

Once Mercedes and Sam were outside and out of her father's sight, Mercedes turned her attention to him. "Okay, so this is how all of this is going to work," she began as she felt around for something in her purse. "I'm going to get in my car and I'm gonna go see my friends Santana and Brittany. You, Sir are going to ride in your _own _car. Yes?" She said and Sam had to bite back a laugh, noticing how she spoke to him as if he couldn't comprehend well.

He watched her as she continued digging through her purse and as she pulled out a set of keys. "No, it's not going to work that way," he stated as she began to walk towards her car.

Mercedes' head shot up at the sound of his voice. It was low and masculine and she wasn't sure that it belonged to him at first.

"Did you _not_ hear what your father said?" he asked.

Mercedes laughed a little, walking up to him with one of her hands on her hips. Sam paid close attention to how her hips swayed from side to side and how her breasts bounced slightly even though she was walking slowly.

"Okay," she said, and Sam was surprised at how easy that had been. "Where's your car?"

He guided the way to the car, opening the back door for her and Mercedes shook her head then let out a small chuckle.

"First off, let's get some things straight," she said. "My father may have hired you to do whatever it is that you do, but I'll have you to know that I am a grown ass woman. Okay?"

Sam only nodded, waiting for her to finish. "Which means, I don't need a babysitter, Sir," she continued. "Secondly, Mercedes Jones does_ not_ ride in the backseat of anyone's car." She could tell that he was the least bit intimidated by her tough act, but she wanted him to know that she wasn't intimidated by him either.

He mumbled something under his breath and Mercedes glared at him. "Excuse me?" she said. "You just got hired now; I have no problems going to my-"

"I said, no wonder why your father hired me," Sam stated, cutting her off.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mercedes asked. Both of her hands were on her hips now and Sam could tell that she was ready to debate.

"It means you act like a child. Now get in the car," he said, still holding the door opened for her.

"You don't get to talk to me that way," Mercedes said, not even attempting to move.

"It's only professional that you ride in the backseat," Sam said.

"Well, I'm not riding in the backseat so I guess I'll be driving myself," she said, taking her keys out once again and walking over to her own car.

"Your father-" Sam started but was cut off by her words.

"My father never said that I couldn't drive _myself_," she said, climbing into the car, starting it up, and then putting it in reverse.

Refusing to believe that she would actually leave him standing there, Sam didn't move as she began to back up the car.

When he saw that she wasn't going to stop, he jumped into his own car in an attempted to trail her. After realizing that he'd completely lost her, he pulled over on the side of the road and rubbed a hand through his dark blonde hair. _"A tracking device would have been nice,"_ he thought to himself.

* * *

"I was looking for you today."

Mercedes looked up to see Sam sitting outside of her apartment door. "Why are you here?" she asked, digging in her purse for her keys.

"You're not going to ask me what happened?" he asked, staring up at her.

"I really don't care," she told him as she made her way past him.

"Well," he started. "I was going to come find you until I realized that you hadn't given me any _specific_ directions as to where you were heading and that you hadn't given me any last names."

"I don't have to tell you anything," Mercedes said simply.

"According to your father, you do, and I'll appreciate it if you let me know where you're going next time." Sam said, standing up from the floor. "Do you not realize that I could have lost my job today? Yes, I could have been fired on my first day because of that simple shit you pulled. Your father hired me to protect you, not to let you roam all over town by yourself. Do you know that I waited for you for more than three 3 hours? Anything could have happened to you in that amount of time."

Mercedes looked up at him and Sam could tell that she wasn't sorry.

"You didn't have to look for me," she said. Finally locating her key, she opened her door, but didn't go in.

"Yes, I did," Sam responded. "And you should probably find a better place to put those."

Mercedes looked at him, waiting for him to be more specific.

"Your keys," he clarified. "It took you approximately 2 minutes and 38 seconds to locate them and you _still _had to open the door."

"Okay,_ Genius_," Mercedes smarted off. "That only happened because_ someone_ won't leave me alone.

"No, you did the same exact thing earlier when you were trying to find your car keys," Sam corrected.

"Yea and that _same_ Genius was bothering me earlier as well," Mercedes replied, refusing to be proved wrong. "And I bet next time this_ said_ Genius won't try and put me in the back seat of his car either."

Sam watched her as she entered her apartment, looking out at him. "That's if there is a next time," she added. "Now goodnight, Sir."

Before she could close the door, Sam stopped it with his foot and Mercedes looked down. She was about to set him straight until she noticed how big his feet were.

"Here," Sam said, watching her as she admired his shoe size. He held out a card to her and she took it.

"What's this?" she asked, looking at the card.

"It's my card," he said, inhaling the scent that was now flowing out of her apartment. "The next time you decide to _try_ something like that again_, and I'm sure you never will because I won't allow it,_ can you at least call me and let me know where you are?"

"I'll think about it," Mercedes laughed, closing the door.


	3. Chapter 3

It had been three weeks since Mercedes' father had hired Sam to be Mercedes' bodyguard and things were still going horribly. Mercedes would find every reason to argue with him, not that he would _actually_ argue back with her, but it seemed to him that she tried to get him to do so every chance she got. She would start with him in the car, while at her parents' house, while at the studio, and she would even find something to say to him when he was minding his own business.

Whenever something would happen between them in front of Mercedes' friends, Santana would always be the one to egg Mercedes on while correcting Sam whenever she felt that he was taking it too far. Tina, Brittany, Kurt, and Blaine hated it altogether though. They were continuously trying to make Mercedes to get along with Sam, but Mercedes just wasn't having it being that she hadn't wanted a bodyguard in the first place.

After a while, Sam had learned that Mercedes would let any situation go if he just ignored her so he did that often.

"Don't tell me to shut up!" Mercedes said as she sat in the passenger's seat of Sam's car.

They'd been arguing none stop since they'd gotten back into the car after she'd attended one of Kurt and Blaine's famous get-togethers.

"I didn't tell you to shut up," Sam said, focusing on the road. "I'm just telling you that it's kind of hard to concentrate with you in the front seat yelling like that."

"So, what you're trying to say is that I should get in the back?" Mercedes asked, now reapplying her lip gloss.

Sam had no idea why she was doing such a thing when she was only going home, but he couldn't help but look over at her as she did so. He made sure to keep a close eye on the road as he glanced over at her every once in a while, studying the way she squinted her eyes a little as she looked into a small hand mirror. She glided the lip gloss tube over her bottom lip and he found himself thinking about how her lips would feel against his. He immediately shook the thought away when she looked over at him.

"What the hell are you looking at?" She asked.

"Nothing," he lied, stopping at a red light and thanking God that he was wearing shades.

"You are such a liar," Mercedes stated sharply. "I know exactly what you were looking at. You were looking at my lips. I bet your perverted ass was over there thinking about how good it would feel if I let you kiss them, huh?"

"I wasn't looking at your lips," Sam said sharply. "And even if I were, that doesn't make me a pervert."

"I bet you look at my ass all the time too, don't you?" Mercedes continued, ignoring what he'd just said. "I know that's why you wear those shades, Sir."

"I don't look at your ass," Sam lied again. "And stop calling me Sir! My name is Sam!"

Mercedes had been addressing Sam as Sir ever since she'd meet him three weeks earlier and it was making him wonder how old she actually thought he was.

Pulling up at her residence, Sam went around to open her car door and she smacked his hand out of the way when he offered it to her.

"I don't need your help," she said, getting out of the car and walking toward her apartment building.

Once they'd made it to her apartment, Mercedes took her house key out of her purse.

"I see you moved your keys," Sam said, noticing that it didn't take her as long to find them as it usually did.

"So," she said, opening the door then flicking on a light switch. It was her first time ever turning on a light when he'd walked her up to her apartment, and Sam could see white furniture and many different hues of purple in what looked like a living room. That was all he saw since she was careful not to let him see anything else though. "You should just be aware that me moving my keys had nothing to do with what you said."

"I'm sure it had nothing to do with what I said," Sam stated sarcastically.

"It didn't," Mercedes said, trying to convince him. "Now I'm going to bed, and this time, _go home_. I don't need you sitting in your car all night."

"If I don't sit in my car, you'll leave," Sam said, thinking about the time where he'd awaken from his sleep to catch Mercedes leaving. He'd followed her all the way to Tina's house where she'd picked the girl up and then he'd trailed them to a store. Once there, he was surprised to see that she'd only left her apartment to go get _personal_ supplies. When she'd finally noticed that he'd been following her, she had already dropped Tina back off and was getting ready to go back inside of her apartment building. She had been pissed, but that hadn't stopped him from camping out in his car, and after a while she even started texting him to wake him up whenever she needed to run an errand.

"Don't you have family to attend to?" Mercedes asked since he never talked about his personal life.

"Yea, I have a mother, a father, and two twin siblings," Sam said.

"Why don't you go home then?" She asked.

"If I go home then I lose my job," he told her. "And if I lose my job, my family will lose their home. My siblings are only 12, my father can't work anymore because he's had three strokes, and my mother has to stay home to watch after him and the twins."

Mercedes actually felt bad for him for the first time since she'd met him. "I'm so sorry to hear that," she said to him and he shook his head.

"Don't be sorry," Sam said. "I've been working hard since I was 17 years old. I'm used to it."

Mercedes expression suddenly changed. "Exactly how old are you?" She asked.

"I see someone didn't look at the card too well," Sam said with a laugh. "My name, age, and number were all on it."

"I only used it for the number," she said honestly.

"I'm 26 years old," he told her and he could see her eyes widened.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yea," he said with a crooked smile. "How old do I look?"

"I really don't know," Mercedes started. "I thought you were at least thirty. Besides, I've never seen your eyes since you're always wearing those damn shades. And hasn't anyone ever told you that it's dangerous to drive while wearing those things?"

"I'm a professional." Was all Sam had said before moving around her so that he was now standing inside of her apartment. The light seemed a lot brighter on the inside and he watched her as she watched him silently. He slowly took off his shades, letting his eyes adjust to the light. "Also, I can't believe you would talk to a thirty year old man the way you've been talking to me," he laughed. "You know you can be really rude at times."

"You have very beautiful eyes," Mercedes said, staring up and into his eyes.

"Thanks," Sam said with a light smile. "I get the color from my mother. We're the only two with green eyes."

"They _really _are beautiful," she complimented again.

"Can you see yourself in them?" Sam asked.

Mercedes was about to ask him what he meant by that but before she could say anything, Sam was leaning down and kissing her. She stood up on her tiptoes to deepen the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck. He immediately lifted her up, using his foot to close the door and then backed her up against it without breaking the kiss.

Only when Mercedes moaned into his mouth, did Sam stop what he'd been doing to her.

"This isn't right," he said, placing her back down to the floor.

"What?" Mercedes asked, her breathing heavy.

"Your father hired me to protect you," Sam said. "We can't…I can't do this to you."

* * *

**I'm going to stop right here because if I don't I'm going to write Samcex, and when I write Samcex I can't seem to stop. lol. So tbc, maybe.**


	4. Chapter 4

"Tina, you knew about this too!" Mercedes said to her best friend and assistant.

"I can't say I didn't," Tina said with a smile. "This is why I held you up after the pre-Grammy party."

"I kind of figured you were up to something," Mercedes said, smiling and then hugging her friend. "This is amazing. Thank you."

"Don't thank me," Tina said, accepting the hug. "This was all Mr. and Mrs. Jones idea. We _all_ knew you were going to win though."

"Congratulations, Baby girl."

Mercedes turned around to see her father with his arms outstretched and her mother with her hands clasped together in front of her with the goofiest smile on her face.

"Thanks Daddy," Mercedes said, meeting her father halfway and hugging him.

Mrs. Jones was the next one to be hugged. "I'm so proud of you, Baby," she said, hugging her daughter tightly.

"Thanks mom," Mercedes said. "But I can't breathe."

Mrs. Jones laughed then let Mercedes go, kissing her on the cheek. "We really are proud of you," she said.

* * *

"Why so down?" Kurt asked, sitting down beside Mercedes who was now watching everyone around her.

"Just thinking," Mercedes said, looking up at her friend.

"Girl, you just won a Grammy for Album of the Year," Kurt said, standing up and pulling her up with him. "You don't have time to be thinking. We're celebrating, okay?"

"I'll be back," Mercedes said, pulling out her phone and holding it up to him. "I just need to make a quick call first."

"Okay," Kurt said, watching his friend in confusion as she walked towards the door.

Once she was outside, Mercedes sat down on the step. She pressed the number 3 on her cell phone, and then hit the call button, looking down at the phone long enough to read the words _Calling Sam._

"So you couldn't congratulate me?" she asked once he'd picked up on the other end.

"Congratulations," Sam said simply.

"Really?" Mercedes asked.

"What do you mean _really_?" Sam questioned.

"Never mind," Mercedes said. "Where are you?"

As soon as Sam was about to answer, Mercedes spoke again. "I'm going to have to call you back," she said, hanging up the phone without waiting for a response.

Sam looked down at the phone in disbelief, watching from the distance as a guy came out of the house and sat down on the step next to Mercedes. He'd already heard about the surprise party from Tina and he'd been parked out of view ever since she and Mercedes had arrived at Mercedes' parents' house.

Sam couldn't see much from where he was parked but he could see that the guy was black, very buff, and that he was dressed in grey from head to toe. He watched as the guy hugged Mercedes and he figured that maybe he was congratulating her on her win tonight.

"Turn this way," Sam said to himself, wanting to get a view of the guys' face. He sat in his car, watching as Mercedes and the guy talked for over 10 minutes and when the guy finally turned around, Sam recognized him immediately.

"Shane Tinsley," Sam said to himself.

Shane Tinsley was a well-known R&B singer. He hadn't won any awards but he'd been seen in many of the well-known artist's videos and had been featured on many of their tracks, including one of Mercedes'. Sam watched closely as Mercedes nodded her head with a smile and he wanted so badly to hear what they were talking about.

"Eight o'clock tomorrow night," Mercedes said, nodding her head. "Well tonight actually since my parents thought that it was a great idea to throw me a party _right after_ a party."

Sam sat in silence as he watched Shane get up and offer Mercedes a hand, pulling her towards him to her hug her tightly. He had to turn his head at the sight of it, and when he turned back they had already disappeared back inside of the house.

* * *

Once the party was over, Tina drove an exhausted Mercedes home and waited for her to text that it was okay to go before she left the girls' apartment building.

"Why the hell did I invite Shane over tonight?" Mercedes asked herself, walking out of her bedroom bathroom and lying down on her queen sized bed before hearing a knock at her door. "Who the hell could this be now?" She asked, getting up and walking to the door.

Standing up on her tiptoes to look out of the peek hole, she saw that it was Sam and suddenly felt refreshed. She smoothed her hair down and ran her hands over her cotton pajamas. _"Why the hell am I doing all of this?" _She thought to herself before opening the door.

"Do you not realize that it's almost 6 o'clock in the morning?" Mercedes asked, turning on her bitch mode and looking up at a drenched Sam.

"It's about to storm, and I was wondering if-" Sam started.

"Hell no," Mercedes said. "This is not the first time it's rained outside."

"I said it's about to _storm_," Sam repeated, putting emphasis on the word storm. "_Just_ raining and storming are two different things.

Mercedes rolled her eyes at him. "Come in," she said, leaving him to close and lock the door.

Sam was able to look around the apartment with ease now, admiring the artwork that hung on the walls and the different hues of purple that went greatly with the solid white furniture. He was knocked back into reality when something soft hit him in the face and he caught it before it hit the floor, noticing that it was a shirt and a pair of pants.

"I bought that shirt for my father, but decided he wouldn't like it," Mercedes explained. "The pants belong to my cousin. They're new as well. He made a mistake and left them a while back. Keeps saying he's coming for them but never does."

"I have clothes in the-" Sam started but stopped when Mercedes started toward the back of her apartment again. Once she was completely out of sight, Sam began to take off his shirt.

"You can sleep on the couch!" Mercedes yelled from the back. "Just don't fuck it up!"

When she returned this time, she was holding a lavender blanket. "Also, don't come past the bathroom," she said, walking back into the living room. Her tone was low now and she was staring at him.

"Sorry," Sam said quickly, realizing that he was half naked. "I was going to the bathroom."

"It's okay," Mercedes said, handing him the blanket, her eyes never leaving his ripped abs.

"Thanks," he said with a sly smile, taking the blanket from her hands and placing it down on the couch. He took off his shades and moved past her. "Show me to the bathroom?" he asked, holding the clothes that she'd just given him.

Not until Sam had finished showering and pulled on his pants did he hear, what sounded like moaning coming from the next room.

"_It's coming from the television,"_ he told himself, gurgling some mouthwash and then spitting it into the sink. As soon as he turned the water on to rinse out the sink, the moaning began to get louder.

"_Definitely not the television_," he thought again, opening the bathroom door and walking out. He was about to go back down the hall and to the living room until he noticed the door that the moaning was coming from was cracked opened.

Tiptoeing over to the door, he got down on one knee and peered in through the small crack. The first thing he saw was the black cotton pajama pants that Mercedes had been wearing earlier, and what he saw next made him lick his lips. Mercedes was lying on a queen sized bed, her legs spread opened, and her head thrown back against a pillow as she finger fucked herself.

Sam was breathing hard now as he watched her through the small crack, letting his right hand travel to the fly of his jeans. Sliding his hand inside, he began to stroke his growing erection. "Fuck,"he said as he studied the way she pumped her fingers in and out of herself at a steady speed.

Something was telling him to get up from the floor and go back to the living room, but he couldn't seem to move. That same _something _was telling him that it was wrong to be watching his boss' daughter as she pleased herself, but he didn't care.

He started to stroke his erection harder as Mercedes brought her fingers up from their current position and sucked them clean before burying them again. "Mmmm mmmh," he heard her moan as she opened her legs even wider, thrusting her fingers rhythmically.

"Come on," he said and she did just that, as if she'd heard his words. Her back was now arched up off of the bed, her eyes were shut tightly, and her head was thrown back as she whimpered. Sam had to close his own eyes as his own orgasm hit so that he wouldn't moan out loud. When he opened his eyes again, he continued to study her as she continued to play with herself, needing to come down from her high.

Sam stood up quietly, and he was just about to go clean himself up when he noticed her. Mercedes had turned her head slightly and was now looking at him through the small crack of the door, her eyes full of lust. He was sure that his heart was going to pop out of his chest as he backed up from her bedroom door and started back towards the bathroom.

"_She saw me," _he thought to himself, leaning up against the bathroom sink. _"She saw me."_


	5. Chapter 5

Sam had stayed in the bathroom for what seemed like an eternity before returning to the couch and pulling the lavender blanket fully on top of him and he was just falling asleep when he heard Mercedes' voice. Not wanting to face her, he played asleep until she began to tug the covers away from his face. He could hear her talking now, but he couldn't seem to make out her words. All the feelings of embarrassment were coming back to him now as the words _"She saw me." _began to play over in his mind again and again.

After a while of her tugging at the blanket, he moved the blanket back and away from his face, deciding that he was going to have to face her soon anyway.

"I thought it was the televi-" Sam started to explain but then paused, noticing that Mercedes was standing next to him in only a dark red T shirt and black boy shorts. He let out a deep breath and turned his head away from her.

"I thought it was the television," he finished, _and again_, Mercedes didn't respond. Instead he could feel her lift up the covers up and crawl underneath them, her body now hovering his.

"What are you doing?" He asked her and she began to grind on top of him, ignoring his question.

"Fuck me," she whispered.

At her words, he wanted to do just that. He wanted so badly to embrace her, to bring her body closer to his. He wanted to free her of the few items of clothing that she was still wearing, turn her over and give her exactly what she was asking him for, but he knew that it was wrong.

"I can't," he said, pushing her back with ease and then jumping up from the couch. He landed on the floor with the lavender blanket caught around his legs, looking up at the couch to see that Mercedes wasn't there. He'd been dreaming.

* * *

"You left quickly this morning," Mercedes said once she'd finally come downstairs. She was fully dressed in dark blue jeans, a grey top that was covered by a royal blue blazer, and royal blue pumps. Her hair was down in deep curls and her lips were bright red.

"Yea, I had to go to my hotel room to get some of my own clothes _while you were still sleeping_," Sam said without looking at her.

Their rides to and from each location that day were a lot more quiet than usual and Sam refused to look at her even though he was wearing shades. He had gone to go get him something to eat while she and Tina went from store to store, giving them some time alone. When he'd returned at a given time, Mercedes was already sitting in the car and Tina was trying to wave off cameras.

"Go get in your car," he said to the Asian girl, watching her walk behind his vehicle to get into her own, only a few people still following close behind her with cameras. He waited for her to leave then he had to literally push one camera man away before getting into his own car.

* * *

_7:57 P.M…_

_8:30 P.M…_

_8:45 P.M…_

_9:12 P.M…_

_9:53 P.M…_

_10:05 P.M…_

Sam hit his head hard against the headrest. He'd been waiting for Shane to come down from Mercedes' apartment for more than 2 hours now. He was just about to get out of the car when saw a dark figure walking away from her apartment building. Noticing that it was Shane, he let out a deep breath then watched through his review mirror as the guy got into his car and left.

**000000**

Mercedes unbuttoned her blazer, taking it off to free herself from her grey shirt and black bra and she'd just unbuttoned her pants when she heard a knock at the door.

"Shit!" She said, pulling her pants down, her underwear automatically coming off with them. She heard a knock again and grabbed a black silk robe from the foot of her bed.

"Coming!" She yelled, closing her robe and tying it around her waist.

Sam couldn't help but stare down at her once she'd opened the door. "You left this," he said, holding out the white lace bra that Mercedes had bought earlier. "I meant to bring it up earlier, but I didn't want to interrupt you and your company."

"Thanks," Mercedes said, taking the bra from his hands and putting it on a small table right beside the door.

"I take it that you guys had fun," he said, still looking down at her robe and refusing to make eye contact.

"Yep," Mercedes said with a wide smile.

"Well, I just came to bring you your…stuff.." He said, turning to leave.

"We didn't do anything," Mercedes said quickly and Sam stopped in his tracks. "We just talked."

"You don't have to tell me anything," Sam said, his eyebrows turned inward.

"I do," she responded. "We only talked. We did nothing else. He told me about how he wanted to be with me, but I told him I couldn't because my heart is already set on someone else so we agreed on just being good friends, and then we talked about music. Nothing else, just music. He didn't touch me at all."

"This isn't any of my business," Sam said. "I'm your bodyguard, not your manager and not your father."

"I know you're not, and I know I don't have to tell you but I want to," she said.

"Why?" He asked.

"Because I have these feelings," she answered.

"What feelings?" Sam asked in a confused tone.

"I can't really explain them, I just do," Mercedes answered and Sam only looked at her. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that I want you."

Sam stared at her, trying to make sure that he'd just heard the correct words. "What?" He asked.

"I want you," she reiterated. "I couldn't think of Shane in any other way because I couldn't stop thinking about you."

Sam shook his head. "No," he said. "We can't."

"Why can't we?" Mercedes asked, her voice rising.

"Because I work for your father," Sam said.

"This has nothing to do with my father!" Mercedes nearly yelled. "I'm grown!"

"You're nineteen," Sam said.

"That didn't stop you from watching me last night, did it?" Mercedes asked, her voice now low.

Sam ran a finger through his hair, letting his glare fall to the ground. He could feel his insides start to grow hot as embarrassment filled him all over again.

"I saw you," Mercedes said. "And I saw the look in your eyes. You enjoyed it just as much as I did."

"Stop," Sam said, trying to block out her words.

"You wanted to be where my fingers were, didn't you?" she continued. "Be honest."

"Stop it," Sam said. He hated how easy it was for Mercedes to speak her mind at times.

"Or has that always a part of your job? Do you always go around-"

"Shut up!" Sam said without thinking.

"Don't tell me to shut- Mm mm mmm," Mercedes moaned into his mouth as he backed her up, closing the door behind them.

"I don't want to do this to you," Sam said, roughly turning her away from him to where her ass was now up against his crotch.

"Please," Mercedes begged as he bit down on her neck while kneading her silk-covered breasts.

"Your father," Sam said, grinding into her backside.

"He doesn't have to know," she said, clasping her hands over his as he cupped her breasts.

"And when he finds out?" Sam asked.

"He won't," Mercedes said, turning completely in his arms to kiss him deeply. "He won't find out." She said against his lips.

"This is wrong," Sam said, pulling away from her.

"It's not wrong if I want it," Mercedes said, pushing him until the back of his legs hit a hard surface. Making him sit down on the couch, she moved to straddle him.

"And it's not just lust?" Sam asked as she kissed and sucked on _his_ neck now.

"Un uh," Mercedes responded, shaking her head.

"Wait," Sam said, pushing her up a little.

"What?" She whined.

"You do realize that I'm much older than you, right?" He asked and she humped her shoulders.

"And you do realize that there are other guys in this world, right?" He added, taking off his shades.

"If you don't want me, just say it," Mercedes said. "I am aware that I can have anyone, but I'm choosing you so if you-"

"No, no!" Sam said, cutting her off. "I do want you. God, I want you. I'm just saying; you are a beautiful girl, you're talented, and _you already know_ that any guy would be happy to have you. I just don't think that I should be the one to take the spot of someone who's probably more deserving."

"You don't think you're deserving?" She asked.

"I do. _I mean_ if you were older, this would be a lot different," he replied.

"So you _do_ think you're deserving?" Mercedes asked, sitting up in his lap.

"I see you hear only what you wanna hear," Sam laughed.

"I'm just tryna understand what you're saying," Mercedes laughed as well. "So you think I should try with Shane?"

"That's where the next problem comes in," Sam said with a small sigh.

"What's that?" She asked.

"I don't wanna watch you be with anyone else," he stated honestly.

"Then be with me," Mercedes said simply.

"I can't," Sam said.

"Older guys date younger girls all the time. It happens," She said.

"But when guys fall in love, they don't usually fall for their bosses daughter," Sam said.

"You're-" Mercedes started.

"Yes," Sam said, already knowing her next question. He moved a piece of hair out of her face. "But no matter how right it feels, I know it's so wrong."

"Just be with me," Mercedes repeated. "Daddy doesn't have to know. No one has to know."


	6. Chapter 6

"I'm glad to see you and Sam getting alone." Tina said to Mercedes once they'd made it inside of a clothing store.

She'd just witnessed Mercedes letting Sam give her a hand out of the car and Mercedes helping him with the collar of his jacket, and she couldn't help but think about how unusual it was for the two of them since they seemed to hate one another.

"I remember when you guys hated each other." She continued then looked at Mercedes suspiciously. "What's all the smiling about?"

"Nothing," Mercedes said quickly, humping her shoulders. She hadn't even realized that she'd been smiling. "I was just thinking about something."

"_I was just thinking about something_," Tina mocked her. "Who was it?"

"What?" Mercedes asked, studying her friends' cold gaze, and Tina only stared at her accusingly.

"Oh," Mercedes said, finally catching on. "No! I can't believe you think I-."

"Did you?" Tina asked, cutting her off. She picked up a pink top and holding it up against herself.

"No," Mercedes lied. "You know if I did anything with anyone, I would tell you." She took the top from the girls' hands. "That's ugly."

Tina laughed lightly as she turned to watch Mercedes hang the shirt back on a rack before she started pushing items around herself.

"What?" Mercedes asked as she could feel her friend looking at her again.

"You are such a bad liar." Tina said simply.

"What?" Mercedes asked, her tone surprised.

"You did something with someone." Tina said. "I would tell you if I did something with someone."

Mercedes huffed. "You are such a con," she laughed.

"I know. And _you_ know that I'm not going to stop until you tell me, so who was it?" Tina asked.

Mercedes knew there was no way she could keep a secret from Tina. "Don't say anything, T!"

"Okay." Tina replied, anxiously.

"I mean it, T!" Mercedes said, seriouly.

"I said, okay!" Tina nearly yelled.

Mercedes sighed heavily. "Sam," She said, her tone low.

"Sam, what?" Tina asked, her tone confused and Mercedes didn't respond. "No," She said, shaking her head. "You can't..He's your bodyguard Mercedes! Do you know what your father would-"

"Shhh!" Mercedes said, putting a finger up to her plump lips and looking around the store.

Tina ducked her head as she began to speak again, "Mercedes, your father is going to freak when he finds out."

"He's not going to find out!" Mercedes responded.

"Okay," Tina let out a long breath. "How long has this been going on?"

"Well, it happened a week ago," She started. "And ever since then, we haven't been able to get enough of-That's too much information?"

Tina only nodded her head and Mercedes could tell that she was beginning to worry about the situation. "You're _fucking_ your bodyguard." She said all of a sudden.

"Don't make it sound so bad," Mercedes whispered.

"Mercedes, you were a virgin!" She exclaimed.

"You know what, I'm sorry I told you." Mercedes said out of frustration, forcing a shirt back onto the rack and heading towards the EXIT of the store.

"Mercy!" Tina called, catching up with her friend. She caught the girls' arm and Mercedes came to a stop, turning to her friend. Her eyes were sad and Tina couldn't help but feel bad for the way she'd just reacted. "I'm sorry." She said lowly. "I shouldn't have judged you like that. I just couldn't help but think about what people would say if this were to get out."

"I don't care what people are going to think or say." Mercedes said. "I should be able to date whomever I want."

"You're right about that but what about your father?" Tina asked. "Do you think he's going to be pleased with his only daughter having relations with a man whose 8 years older than she is?"

"This isn't about my father, T. I'm grown." Mercedes stated angrily. "Besides, Sam is 7 years older than I am."

"That makes a _great _difference," Tina said sarcastically.

It was quiet for a while until Tina finally decided to speak again. "How much do you really know about Sam?" She asked. "I mean, tell me something that _I_ haven't learned about him since he became _your_ bodyguard."

"Well, he has a big-" Mercedes started on a chuckle.

"No!" Tina covered her ears, laughing. "I don't want to hear that!"

They both stood laughing until Mercedes spoke up again, "I think love him," She said, picking imaginary lint from her own shirt. "I mean, I know he's someone I can see myself with forever, and…"

"You _think_ you love him?" Tina asked, cutting her off.

"I _know_ I love him," Mercedes corrected.

"Does he love you?" Tina asked.

"He said, well he…" Mercedes tried to find words. "Why does this matter right now? We came to shop, right?"

"We always shop." Tina replied. "You only had one virginity! This situation matters!"

"I really didn't expect this from _you_." Mercedes said, sadly. "I don't need anyone to look out for me. Okay?"

"I'm not trying to tell you what to do." Tina explained. "I just-when you're in this industry, this is how it works. You know this."

"I do know that." She said with a sigh. "I just-Sometimes I just want to be able to live a normal life without having to be so secure about everyone around me and what they are going to have to say about the things I do with _my_ life."

* * *

Later that night...

Sam climbed into the bed and waited for Mercedes to come out of the bathroom.

He'd made it a habit to go up to her apartment really late at night when he was sure no one would see him, and then leave early in the morning.

He had just turned on the television when she came out of the bathroom, dressed in an over sized T-shit. Her hair had been pulled up into a messy bun and she was no longer wearing any make-up.

"You look so pretty when you're like this." Sam said, looking at her as she climbed onto the bed.

"Thanks." She replied with a small smile.

"You okay?" He asked when she laid on her back, looking up at the ceiling.

"Yea," she lied, coming out of her thoughts.

He sat up to lean against the headboard. "Come here," He said, reaching out to her so that she could sit in his lap, her legs rested on either side of his body.

"How did your studio session and your talk with Tina go today?" he asked, kissing her on the chin.

"Studio sessions, wonderful," She replied. "Talk with Tina, not so good." Her voice was low and it worried him.

"Are you sure you're fine?" He asked.

"Yea, I'm sure," she lied again. "I'm just thinking about how I'm on top of you in nothing but a T-shirt and boy shirts and you haven't made a move yet."

Sam smiled up at her, licking his lips as she spoke. "Is that an invitation?" He asked. She nodded then giggled loudly as he turned them both over so that he was now on top.

She wrapped her legs around his waist as he leaned in to kiss her softly on the lips. "Wait." He said against her lips.

She watched him climb off the bed to remove his pants and shirt, then as he climbed back onto the bed, positioning himself against the headboard again.

He placed a pillow at his lower back and reached out for her again. "Come here." He said. He watched her as she crawled to him to straddle his lap again. She moaned at the contact of his erection on her entrance, and she immediately wanted to be filled.

She watched him as he pulled her shirt up enough to lick and suck on her breast, his tongue flicking at her sensitive nipples.

"What do you think about trying this position?" He asked once he's unlatched his mouth from her now hardened nipple and looking up at her.

Her eyes grew wide at his request. "I've never.." she started.

"I know," He said, his tone low as he stared into her eyes.

Mercedes could feel her heart starting to beat faster than normal and then she began to fell an unrecognizable feeling, _maybe of guilt_.

"Sam?" She called, stopping him from pulling her shirt over her head as he'd started to.

"Hmmh?" He asked, hesitating and looking up at her.

"Do you love me?" She asked, and it frightened her how quick the words had come out.

Sam looked at her, and she could tell that it had frightened him as well. "Are you pregnant?' He asked, even though he'd used a condom each time he'd made love to her.

"No, no," Mercedes said. "I just wanna know."

"Yea," Sam said simply and then moved to kiss her neck.

"No, Sam," Mercedes replied on a small moan. Do you _love _me? Like _really_ love me, like I love you?" She asked.

She could feel her heart drop as he let out a long sigh and she could feel herself wanting to cry now. She started to move from atop of him, but he caught her around the waist. "Yes, I love you," He said, looking directly into her eyes. "I really love you and sometimes it scares me to love you the way that I do because I know I'm not supposed to."

Mercedes only stared at him while he talked. "I know your father will hate me if he were to find out about us," He continued. "But I also know that if I be with you, I want to _actually _be with you. I don't want to have to hide us."

"We don't have to hide us forever," Mercedes reassured. "What can people say? Nothing. We're both adults."

"That's what you think because your business isn't out there yet," Sam said. "There are some wicked and evil people in this world. They will tear you down just because they know they can, and I can't allow that. I can't be the reason for it all. I don't want you to hurt because of me."

"It won't be your fault," Mercedes said.

"It will. As soon as you fuck up, it's gonna be because _she was dating someone with too much experience and she let him get to her head. Who fucks their bodyguard anyway?_" He tried to explain.

Mercedes couldn't help but laugh at his imitation of _the other people_. "You're not trying to get to my head though." She said, with questioning eyes.

"Of course not," he responded.

"And you really do love me?" She asked.

"More than anything," Sam said, honestly.

"Okay then," Mercedes said, kissing him softly on the lips. "This should just be about us. If they don't like it, who cares?"

"I really wish it was that easy though," Sam said on a small sigh.

"It is that easy," Mercedes said to him. "Just don't think about what could go wrong. Now are you gonna take your invitation?"

**I'm sorry for ending the chapter right there. I know that it could have been a lot better also, but I haven't updated this fic in 5ever so I needed to make this post. I promise the next chapter will be a lot better though. Thanks for reading and I hope to receive nice reviews. Thanks!**


	7. Chapter 7

**_Finally_ an update. I know right. ****Thank each and every one of you for your kind reviews. I hope I don't disappoint anyone with this update and that it'll bring me more kind reviews instead. Forgive any errors. Enjoy!**

It was love. Nearly a month had passed since Sam had admitted to Mercedes that he loved her, and the two of them couldn't seem to be any happier.

Tina had continued to act clueless about their relationship whenever Sam was around but as soon as he wasn't anywhere in sight, she would go right back to interrogating Mercedes.

"So you two are talking about marriage?" She asked her best friend from the other end of her cell phone.

"How many times do I have to explain this to you, Tina?" Mercedes responded. "We are not talking about marriage. We're just thinking about how it would be if we were to get married.

"Then you two are talking about marriage." She exclaimed. "And you are too young, Mercedes."

Just then Mercedes heard a beep on her phone. "This is Sam."

"We're not done talking about this!" Tina fussed.

"Okay, okay. Gotta go." She hung up quickly and clicked over to Sam.

"Be right out." She said, grabbing a jacket and heading for the door.

Once she was inside of the car, she kissed Sam on the lips. "You think you're ready to talk to my father now?" She asked.

"I don't know." He responded slowly.

"You know we're gonna have to tell him someday." She said, looking over at him.

"Just not now, Mercedes." He snapped.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "Well, I'm sorry I even brought this up."

"It's not..you." He reassured her. "It's just that, I want to be able to tell him but every time I'm in his presence, I freeze up because I can't help but think about the worse that could happen. What if he fires me and make it so I won't be able to see you again? What if he-"

"Don't." Mercedes said, cutting him off. "He won't be able to do any of the things you're thinking. I love you and you love me, and I promise I will not let anyone, including Daddy take away what we have."

He sighed, trying to remember to keep his eyes on the road. "I just couldn't see my life without you, Mercedes."

* * *

"Hey, Baby girl." Mr. Jones greeted Mercedes as she walked into the Jones' family living room.

"Hey, Daddy." She greeted with a wide smile. "Where's mom?"

"Now you know you two bake on Fridays." He said. "She just went back to the kitchen."

"Okay." She said, stepping past his favorite chair.

"Where's Sam?" He asked.

"He's out in the car. Think he said he was gonna make a few runs." She answered on a small shrug.

"You two getting along fine?" He asked.

"We don't really get along, but he's not as bad as I thought he was." She lied with a straight face.

"You haven't been giving that man a hard time, have you?" He asked.

"_No hard times, just hard ons."_ She smiled at the thought.

"Baby Girl?" She heard Mr. Jones call and she snapped out of her thoughts.

"Oh! Of course not, Daddy!" She chuckled lightly, really wanting the conversation to end there.

Just then Mrs. Jones walked into the living room, saving her life and wearing her favorite apron.

"Hey, mommy." Mercedes smiled, walking over to hug her mother before taking a seat on the edge of the couch.

As soon as she sat down Mrs. Jones motioned for her to stand back up. "You came over to help me." She said, starting towards the kitchen with Mercedes following close behind.

* * *

"Now you know you have to wait for that cake to cool before putting that icing on it." Mrs. Jones said to her daughter as Mercedes stood with an icing covered utensil hovered over a chocolate cake. "Grab that vanilla extract."

Mercedes put the icing utensil down and walked around the table to get the vanilla abstract. "Here ya go." She said, handing it over to her mother.

"Pour just a drop of it in that bowl over there." She said, pointing towards the bowl on the other end of the table.

Mercedes opened the vanilla extract and immediately felt sick. "Ummm uhn." She said, holding it away from herself.

"What's wrong?" Mrs. Jones asked, looking over at her daughter as she mixed something in another bowl.

"I guess it's just the smell, that's all." Mercedes said, screwing the top back on it.

"What about it?" Her mother asked confused. "We bake with it almost every Friday. Besides you love Vanilla abstract."

"I know." Mercedes nodded. "I'm just not feeling well all of a sudden."

Mrs. Jones looked at her daughter suspiciously. "Girl, you're pregnant." She said positively.

"What? Mom, no!" Mercedes exclaimed.

"Don't, _mom no me_." She replied. "I know a pregnant woman when I see a pregnant woman."

Mercedes huffed in annoyance. "Mom, I'm not pregnant."

"But you've been having sex, right?" She asked.

-silence-

"I, well yea." Mercedes answered honestly. "Can we not? Please?"

"I know you're being smart enough to use protection." Mrs. Jones said, opening then closing the oven.

"Yea," Mercedes responded, thinking about the one time where she and Sam had-had unprotected sex. "I'm not pregnant."

"And I am not convinced." Mrs. Jones responded, glaring at her daughter. "Now you know what this could be like if it gets out to the public, right?"

"I'm not pregnant." Mercedes said again.

"It's not a good look to have children this early in your career, Honey." She continued.

"I'm not pregnant." Mercedes reiterated.

"It's that boy, isn't it?" Mrs. Jones ignored her daughter's words.

"Mom, will you stop it already?" Mercedes nearly yelled. "I'm not having a child, I have not been having unprotected sex, and I do not give a shit what the public would have to say even if I were."

Mrs. Jones stood silently, her cheeks sucked in with her hands on her hips. "Okay." She surrendered, throwing her hands up. "You can keep trying to convince yourself that you're not, but I'm your mother. I know."

* * *

"My mother knows." Mercedes said to Sam once they were on their way back to her apartment.

"What!" Sam asked, almost losing focus of the road. "You told her?"

"No." She answered, letting her head fall against the headrest. "She knows about the pregnancy. I mean, she's not sure because I kept telling her I wasn't pregnant, but she's my mother. She knows."

"So she knows about us then?" Sam asked, somewhat fearful.

"No, she'll believe it's Shane's baby until I tell her otherwise." Mercedes replied.

"And if she talks to Shane?" He asked.

"That won't help."

***30 minutes earlier***

"I'm going to the restroom." Mercedes said as she'd just helped Mrs. Jones take the last of the baked goods out of the oven.

"Alright." Mrs. Jones responded. "I want you to ice the vanilla cupcakes when you come out, then we're through for the day."

"Kay." She answered before heading for the restroom. She sighed heavily as she leaned against the kitchen sink and dialed a number.

_"Yes, Shane. It's Mercedes. I need a favor...-pause-_

_I need you to tell my mother that you and I have...you know, been having sex. -pause-_

_I know it's bullshit and I know you've been trying to go out with me since we met three years ago but I really do need this for you. -pause-_

_What is it? -pause-_

_I can't do that, Shane. -pause-_

_because I'm seeing someone. -pause-_

_I'll tell you what. I'll pay you. Just give me a price and I'll pay you to play along with me. -silence-_

_Just for a while. -pause-_

_Only five hundred? -pause-_

_No, no. I'm fine with the price. I just-pause-_

_Okay, five hundred every time you have to have the conversation with her. It's a deal. -pause-_

_Oh, and Shane? -pause-_

_If she says anything about a pregnancy, just tell her I'm not pregnant. She wants to be convinced that I am. -pause-_

_No I am not! -pause-_

_Okay, thanks. Bye. -ends call-_

"Mercedes, you still alive in there?" She heard Mrs. Jones voice as she'd just started to lose focus.

***present time***

"Mercedes?" Sam called her for the third time once she had finished telling the story.

"I-uhh..yes?" She answered.

"So you're positive that he won't say anything before we get a chance to come clean about it all?" He asked.

"Yes, Sam." She said, sinking further into her seat and staring out of the window. "I'm sure."

**So did you like it or did you LIKE it? How do you feel about Mercedes and Sam keeping such important information from everyone? Do you think Sam should man up already and let everyone know what's going on before it even gets to the point of where Shane, Mercedes, and even himself has to lie to Mr. and Mrs. Jones? I want to know what you guys think. Thanks!**


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